science and medicine in early modern venice 713
1610, the learned community that Shakespeare called “fair Padua, nursery
of arts” achieved a distinction in scientific and medical studies unmatched
anywhere in europe. Polish astronomer nicolas copernicus came to
Padua during Pomponazzi’s tenure, as did numerous other students
seeking to learn the new approach to aristotelian natural philosophy
being taught there.
aristotelian philosophy as developed at Padua was radical and daring
for the time. Shockingly, Pompanazzi argued against the immortality of
the soul. Venturing further in the direction of naturalism, he eliminated all
supernatural agency from causation and denied the traditional christian
view of angels, demons, and miracles. He defended astrology and occult
powers on purely naturalistic grounds, and in his controversial De Incan-
tationibus [of incantations] he gave a purely naturalistic, causal account
of talismans and other forms of magic.37
aristotelianism at Padua, aiming at explicating aristotle without accom-
modating theological interests, was bold, exciting, and, to many intellec-
tuals of the day, uplifting. Zabarella’s passion for science and logic was
certainly the equal of Pomponazzi’s, and his natural-philosophical works
were among the finest products of renaissance aristotelianism. although
he is best remembered as a logician, Zabarella also commented exten-
sively on aristotle’s Physics. The similarity between Zabarella’s works and
certain questions taken up by Galileo has long been recognized, and the
Paduan philosopher’s concern with scientific demonstration links him
with Bacon as well.38
The Shock of the NewWhile humanism rooted Venetian culture in the past, changes were afoot
that would cause thinkers to cease to believe that all truths could be found
in the writings of the ancients. creatures of the book, educated Venetians of
the renaissance were trained to believe that what was revealed in ancient
texts was infallible. The discoveries of mariners, mainly iberian, shook
those beliefs to the core. Knowledge burst the library, and intellectuals
scrambled to keep up.
37 on Pompanazzi’s account of magic, see d. P. Walker, Spiritual and Demonic Magic
from Ficino to Campanella (notre dame, 1975), pp. 107–111.
38 neal Ward Gilbert, Renaissance Concepts of Method (new york, 1963); Gilbert, “Galileo
and the School of Padua,” Journal of the History of Philosophy 1 (1963), 223–31.